The Day After the Week Before…

And how chaotic it has been. After twelve consecutive days of full rehearsals and six performances, we finally finished the production at work. By the end of Friday night, we were all completely shattered – the staff were exhausted, the kids were exhausted, even The Bloke was exhausted after being my personal taxi service all week and we had done it all during the hottest week of the year so far. I had counted down the days religiously for the last month, creating a list that I ticked off at the end of each day. However, rather ironically, after the final performance had ended on Friday night I was sad that it was over. It was going to be the last time I would ever work with some of my favourite students and it was my last ever show, and I felt an unbelievable sense of pride of everything that we had all achieved. My colleagues felt the same, and even my boss (who is normally very calm and collected) was so overwhelmed by the sheer enormity of what we had accomplished together in the last few weeks that he shed a few tears, which set me and many of the students off with him. My mum had come down on the train to see the performance too, and I was pleased that she enjoyed it, which I find quite amusing as she’s seen every performance I have done since I started playing the violin at eight years old, and at 33 I still seek her approval and value her opinion.

On Saturday morning, I was wide awake with some of the songs from the show in my head going round in a loop. My mum was staying for the weekend, and we had planned to go into Birmingham for a wander round. However, I was so tired we ended up going to a local pub, had a nice lunch, spent some time relaxing in the park in the glorious weather, and then we had a sleep for the rest of the afternoon. In fact, she pretty much slept for the rest of the time she was here – she’s had a horrible time at work recently and she’s been stressed and tired, so it was nice that she could completely relax and get some rest in the same way that I do when I go to her house.

However, this means that the blog, very much like so many areas of my life at the minute, is in a total mess, and after what seems like forever I finally have time to myself so I can attempt to catch up. I’m going to be over at #SundayBlogShare on Twitter for a large part of the day (which is trending again) and replying to comments that were left as long as three weeks ago. Even better, my head teacher has very graciously given me some days in lieu of the time that I have had to work on my days off, so I don’t have to go into work until Thursday.

Rock on.

What about you guys? Tell me how you have been getting on and catch me up!

It’s strange how one looks forward to the completion of monumental events, which have taken one’s every waking second, but when the event or the project is over, it seems almost ant-climactic, and the chaotic exhaustion is strangely missed. Glad you get to have a rest now!!!!!

Good – thank-you for asking. Just plodding along, trying to survive the dead of summer – 108 degrees the other day, supposed to be 104 today. We spend early mornings outside and retreat inside when it starts warming up. Getting ready to start my second book – researching on Aborigines – very fascinating stuff. I think I would like to go on Walkabout. Hope you have a lovely couple of days off!!!!!!

Went to boarding school in Australia as a kid, wanted to write about that, but needed to add some supernatural elements – so that’s what I came up with. I love reading about different cultures as well. Samurai are so interesting. Did you ever see that movie “House of the Flying Daggers”? Love that movie!!!! Also – speaking of Aborigines – did you ever see “Walkabout” – very fascinating and disturbing all at the same time.

Hi Suzie! Glad you had a nice, restful, relaxing weekend with your mum. I am almost done with a three-day weekend, keeping very busy with projects and friends, and celebrating the Fourth of July. Weather has been beautiful…I only regret I didn’t get in a bike ride!

So glad that your final performances made you feel exhilarated and successful – great way to end this part of your career. Of course, one chapter closes only to open to the next. Hope an interlude finds you and The Bloke enjoying some wonderful personal time.
And wouldn’t it be something if we could land on the jump going up?

Working on the three novels I’ve completed, trying to do final edits (for the 100th time!) and ready them for agent pursuit, though I think that’s really a swim in the desert. Still, I’m going to try, and if it doesn’t work within a reasonable amount of time, I will self-pub. Thank you for asking.

Well, I’ve had a quiet week, really. Was called into work three times this week (refused once) and other than that, the usual round of tests, echo cardiogram (good), lots of walking, feet up and a glass or three of a nice Shiraz.. Heading off to Adelaide in a few days and Herself wants the spare bedroom painted out for her sister coming from Scotland to stay with us for a holiday. Quiet life, really.

I was on the other end of this with a house full of twenty somethings this weekend, working then out to the wee hours then working then out etc… then Sunday lunch came around and a sussuration of snoozes filled the house. They all woke for an early dinner, starving so filled them full of steak and salad. Sweet things apologized as if I’d never done the same. Children, huh!

Thanks! Yeah, that’s what I trained in – I started at the age of 8 and ended up doing a music performance honours degree at a conservatoire. Only trouble was, by the time I finished I realised that orchestral playing was not for me!